Saturday, January 16, 2010

I love you Taylor!


Many years ago I met Taylor. He was a quiet boy in my Science class. He always looked sad or really sleepy. One day I started to ask questions about some of the stickers on his binder. Turns out he loved to snowboard and to skateboard. I'd never seen any spark in him until that day. From then on he would come to class and show me a picture or tell me a story about boarding. Taylor was a completely different person now.

We continued to be close all year. I found out that his parents were divorced and his mother was on her third marriage. She always married money plus she had a good job on her own. Taylor's mother traveled constantly, for business or pleasure. She was always gone. She would throw a bunch of money at him and say, see you in a week with an air kiss.

Taylor's father remarried and had a new family, so he rarely saw Taylor and his sister. It was around this time that Taylor became my emotionally adopted son. He would come to me before and after school just to talk. He would sit at my chair in the back of the class and leave little hello notes.

Every year we take the 8th grade students to Washington DC. This year Taylor and his friends were in my group. We had the best time. I know Washington like the back of my hand, so I was able to give them the insider's tour. On the way back home Taylor's mother called my cell phone. She wanted him to know that she was going out of town and wouldn't be there to pick him up when the buses got back to Ohio. She wanted me to make sure he got home okay.

I was floored she was gone the week before he left and was leaving again. That would be three weeks in a row she wouldn't see her son. She didn't even care. I made sure he had someone to stay with and that he was taken care of when we got back in town.

Eighth grade graduation day arrived. She was there taking pictures and looking so proud. It made me mad, she knew nothing about him. So phony. After the ceremony, she came up to me, hugged me and said "Thank you for taking such good care of my son all year". "He would have never made it without you". I said you're welcome and walked away.

Taylor and I remained close all through his high school years. It was me he called when he was upset or psyched about something. We spent a lot of time talking and hanging out. I never met a person that needed love and attention more than him. Yes, he had every material thing in the world, but no love from his blood family. I was there to take pictures at his prom and proudly sat at his high school graduation.

We're still close. We celebrated his 21st birthday this past summer. Taylor's a junior in college and doing quite well. He still calls me when he is happy or sad. He still hugs me for the longest time when he sees me. Most importantly, he calls me "Mom".

4 comments:

  1. Great post! I really enjoyed reading it. I'm glad you guys still keep in touch and you get to see what he has accomplished in life because you took the time.

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  2. It was a pleasure. He's a wonderful young man :).

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  3. You are one of the rare gem teachers that truly make a difference in the life of others. You are blessed and you bless others, a rare combo. Congratulations!

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  4. Muchas gracias. I always wanted to become a teacher. Mi madre says I used to line up my dolls and stuffed animals and teach them lessons. I really do enjoy my job and my students.

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